Synopsis

After a gathering of eleven Faceless Men, Arya is interrogated by plague face and deemed ready for her first assassination. The kindly man informs Arya that she will need a new face for this job, since Cat of the Canals would be easily recognized. He and the waif lead her down into a hidden chamber deep under the House of Black and White. The walls are covered with mask-like faces, which Arya realizes are the faces of people who die at the House of Black and White. The face chosen for Arya is that of a young girl who was abused to the point of permanent disfigurement, and came to the House seeking death.

Arya's blood is used to soften the leathery mask into living skin, which then bonds to her head and becomes her new face. The kindly man warns Arya that she will suffer the nightmares of the girl whose face she has taken, but only for a time. His promise proves to be true,
and that night Arya dreams of the abuse that was suffered by the girl at the hands of her father. The next day, Arya is given her first target. He is an elderly man running an insurance scam at a shipyard.

The target is always accompanied by two guards, and the kindly man has forbidden her to kill anyone other than her target, so Arya must stalk the man for several days to find an opportunity. She eventually dispatches him by slipping a poisoned coin into the purse of his client, knowing the man selling insurance will bite into the coin to test its legitimacy. The Kindly Man is pleased by her success, and raises her to the status of an acolyte. He gives her a black and white robe to wear while at the House and restores her face. However, the next day she is to take a new face and leave for her first apprenticeship with someone named Izembaro.